Issac Luke will have surgery on his shoulder. Photo / Photosport
Issac Luke will have surgery on his shoulder. Photo / Photosport
Veteran hooker Issac Luke will stay with the Warriors but a potential shoulder reconstruction could delay his start to next season.
The 31-year-old has signed new one-year deal for next year, while young second-rower Isaiah Papali'i has penned a one-year contract extension that will keep him at the club untilat least the end of the 2020 season.
It's understood Luke accepted a heavily reduced offer to remain in Auckland after talks to join Newcastle broke down following news he requires shoulder surgery which could keep him sidelined until March next year.
"It's good to have the contract all sorted out," said Luke.
"We always wanted to stay in New Zealand, my wife and the kids. I'm really happy here at the club and I'm pleased I have another season with the boys."
Luke's new deal follows lengthy negotiations with the Warriors first tabling their offer for him to consider back in July.
The 254-game veteran was hoping for a longer contract but will now hope to maintain his strong form next season to inspire either the Warriors or another rival club to sign him for 2020 and beyond.
However, Luke is in doubt to be fit for the early rounds of next season with the club fearing he could require a full shoulder reconstruction and face a lengthy recovery of up to four to six months.
The former South Sydney Rabbitoh visited a specialist on Wednesday to have an MRI scan to determine the extent of the damage and is expected to go under the knife in the next week.
Luke has a history of shoulder issues and missed the round 10 loss to the Sydney Roosters after suffering a dislocation in the previous week's win over Wests Tigers.
"It's probably likely to be some kind of reconstruction," Warriors general manager of football Brian Smith told Radio Sport.
"The decision for anyone to have an operation at any time is always with the individual, in sport as well as out in the public.
"So no one's telling Issac what he has to do, but if he wants to play football he's got to get that shoulder tidied up so that he and we can get a lot more of the contact training in that he wasn't able to do for much of 2018.
"The operation will be in the next few days and it will be a few months, I would say, in a full recovery, depending on exactly what they find in the MRI."
Meanwhile, Papali'i's extension comes after 20-year-old was named on Monday in the Kiwis squad for next week's transtasman test against Australia in Auckland and the end of year tour of the UK.
The Warriors NRL Rookie of the Year was also selected for the Junior Kiwis and may drop out of the senior squad to captain the Under 20s team in their curtain-raiser clash against the Junior Kangaroos, before re-joining the senior side for the three-test series against England.
Isaiah Papali'i has re-signed with the Warriors. Photo / Photosport
His re-signing comes after the club also recently locked in fellow Warriors junior products David Fusitu'a, Ken Maumalo, Jazz Tevaga and Bunty Afoa.
"Isaiah is a great young prospect who has quickly established himself at NRL level," said Warriors coach Stephen Kearney.
